Is your workplace a 'great place to work?'

We all have a place of work, but is it a good place to work? Some would say yes and others would say no. But how do you define what makes a good place to work? The Great Place to Work Institute (GPWI) believe that at the centre of their definition, a great workplace is measured by the quality of the relationships that exist there. Fostering positive relationships within a company at all levels is absolutely crucial to a great workplace.

But just what sort of culture is needed to foster such relationships to win the understanding, engagement and commitment of the management and staff?

Good relationships = Good communication = Good engagement

So how do you go about making the middle part above - good communication - the most effective you can in your workplace? After all if you get that right, then according to the GPWI, you will have good relationships and engagement, giving you a good workplace.
There are ten things that you can do to improve your workplace communication, therefore making your company a better place to work. So here they are:

1. Keep things simple. Work out a single sentence message that succinctly and exactly portrays your key message to your staff.

2. Make it interesting. Maybe make a series of messages, but with a common theme - like a campaign.

3. Listen. Engagement needs to be two-way, so make sure there is a way of receiving feedback.......and make sure you listen to the responses. Even better, comment on the responses to show your staff that you have read them!

4. Keep it real. Don't use actors in the delivery, use your own staff, it is much more meaningful and respectful.

5. Management and planning. As you reach out with more channels of communication, make sure you are able to handle the effects and the responses of the messages. Multiple channels means many streams of returning information!

6. Channels. Make sure you use more than one channel to communicate. You need to reach as many people as possible.

7.Be creative. Use different mediums and different locations to distribute your messages.

8. Business strategy first. Your communication strategy should be based firmly on your business strategy, and it should be embedded into as many of your projects as possible.

9. Money. You will have to commit to a budget to allow you to deliver your message. You will also need to commit staff resources to the project. You don't have to spend a fortune, but none of this is going to be free!!

10. Do it because you want to! You need to want to embark on a communications strategy, don't just do I because you have been told it is the thing to do. If it is delivered with belief and passion it will mean so much more!

What do you think? Is your workplace a good place to work? How would you improve your workplace?

Thanks to Phil Morley from Blue Goose for the inspiration for this post.